Ooh Ooh YEAH… Looks like the SK Mac+Cheese (+BACON) was well received last night, and guess what… we’re still making it better too!!! So come to SK Din Dins (6-9p) and enjoy yourself some SKMC (as some people have already coined it)… or get some other grub.. such.. AS:
NEBRASKA ANGUS JAPANESE MEATBALL CURRY (Dinner only, and the LAST day before we REALLY rotate it OUT)
SWEET GINGER GLAZED CHICKEN WINGS
Oh yeah, and if you want them DINE LA Roundtable tix.. suckas… show us some LOVE!
Now back to business. If you need more description or reason why all the excitement for that, just read the menu (click above for the NON-file sharing version, or on the left for the file sharing version.. friends) or look up on the internetS the many reasons why BLACK PORK BELLY is highly coveted amongst foodies. ^_^
As usual, I’m running out of time to type up a biblically long post w/ my unfunny wit and banter so we’ll just jump into it!
BYE-BYE DISH
The first dish to be repeated in the SHORT SKDT history!
NEBRASKA ANGUS JAPANESE MEATBALL CURRY
Yup, it’s going away.. AGAIN! It’s kinda been living in the delicious shadow of the MALAYSIAN CHICKEN CURRY (which we miss already), but no MORE! This week, you can stand tall and on your own our tasty friend!
HI-HI DISH(ES)
KOREAN SPICY PORK BELLY
PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE
I should be clear that pork belly is more like the KBBQ version (strips), and not the chunks of pork belly (we’re saving the chunks for a different recipe ^_^)
DIN…DIIIIIIINS (aka DINNER SERVICE)
And yes, you’ve asked for it (for MONTHS) and we are FINALLY ready:
Starting this week, we are going to be serving DIN DINS (I prefer this vs… “din-ner”) on Thursday+Friday nights (6-9p). For right now, the menu will be almost exactly the same, with a couple of possibly surprises/differences for dinner as we progress.
And for those of you that are thinking it, YES, that does mean we’ll be planning on dinner service during the popular (and FREE) Grand Performances concert series!
“Bye Bye” oh beloved NEBRASKA ANGUS JAPANESE MEATBALL CURRY. With your long convoluted and somewhat confusing name combined with your wonderfully rich flavors.. you will be missed by many (except for those that come today to get it for one last time).
Will it be gone long? I don’t know the answer to that my anonymous internet friends. (no really, I DON’T know the answer… we have 50 dishes to rotate through) But let us remember the good times and it’s flavors by watching this video above over… and over.. and OVER again (plus it’s free so why not?)
BREAK IT TO ME, WHAT ELSE IS LEAVING?
PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE is the only other dish that is rotating OUT. Didn’t you watch the video?
WHAT ABOUT THE JAPCHAE/KOREAN GLASS NOODLES THAT I LOVE SO DEARLY THAT I WOULD WRITE A LOVE SONG AND SERENADE “HER” TO SHOW HER MY LOVE
…
ummm, I don’t know how to respond to that. You do know it’s a noodle right? (plus a mix-tape would be whole lot easier) That’s a rather strange comment, but WTH… I’ll go along with it cause they SO tasty.
The answer to that is:
No need to go through all that work to serenade her and buy that boom box and raincoat ala “Say Anything” (but I would love to see someone sing to some noodles, that would be swell), we’ve decided to keep JAPCHAE for ONE MORE WEEK! “Hip hip… HOORAY!”
ANY OTHER NEWS?
Well, it’s week 5 and it seems more people like us than hate us (I THINK they do at least)… so that’s always good! Are we still learning? YEAH we are, but it’s a lot easier now than it was over the last 4 weeks. (WHEW)
So hey, it’s great weather outside so enough of this blogging tomfoolery.. so let’s all leave our computers and go out and play (after you read my blog, Facebook, Twitter and watch my few videos a couple of times)… YAY!
PS- SKDT Dins Dins + Breakfast are in the works… in the WORKS!
WHOOPSEE UPDATE: Forgot to mention that today is ALSO the last day for KOREAN GLASS NOODLES (Japchae) AND the PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE! We’re changing a whole LOTTA stuff next week (but it’ll be tasty… we promise ^_^)
An Ode to Crispy Tofu Balls
(aka Please don’t hurt us friends cause we might bruise easily emotionally and physically ^_^)
As many of you already know, today is the last day (prolly only for a lil bit) for the Crispy Tofu Balls AND the Korean Short-Ribs (everyone talks about the tofu, but no one remembers lil ol’ Mr. “K/Galbi” LOL), and will be the beginning of our attempt to rotate the menu and see… just SEE if Cal Plaza can take this kind of change that we experimented with back in the “old days” of our humble apartment beginnings. ^_^
If you’re around, stop by… today we made a whole LOTTA Crispy Tofu Balls… it’s gonna be a CRISPY TOFU BALL BLOWOUT, so we shouldn’t run out too early (hopefully ;D)
So in honor of some people being very vocal about us taking away the tofu balls, here’s a short montage of pics above that we’d like to share with you… next time we’ll add a lil music (maybe some nice Journey, Air Supply or even… Lady GAGA!) , some nice lighting… and of course top it off with some more spicy mayo for good and tasty measure (damn I’m drooling just typing this up!)
And I KNOW some of you guys are like,
“Is the Starry Kitchen couple CRAZY?!?! Why are they taking them Crispy Tofu Balls away from me? WHHHHHHHHHHHHHY?”
(ducking punches, kicks in the balls and possible tofu balls being thrown at me… but I know you wouldn’t waste our precious lil green babies like that, would you? ^^)
Well first off, it’s because we’ve already started prepping for next weeks dishes. We’d love to have the tofu balls AND what we’re making next week (the dish is not totally a secret if you read the LA Times Daily Food Blog, link below ^_^), but if you wouldn’t believe it we still stay at SKDT until like 10p or 11p every night prepping all the food! We’re still getting the hang of it, but making fresh food to be served FAST is no joke (but we are having a lot of fun doing it though :D)
Also because… well, we have around 50 dishes in our repertoire (I just love using that word for some reason, makes me sound distinguished!) and just maybe… MAYBE… you might like some of the other ones too. Can you blame us for wanting to shed a lil bit of light on some of the other culinary creations the Kitchen Ninja’s crazy mind has come up with? (Maybe I should finally get to that post about ALL the dishes we’ve done, huh?)
Plus if you’ve been by SKDT, then you’ve possibly heard my spiel about how we’re “Hot Shit” right now, but we’ll be “Not Shit” in “5 minutes” because… well, you/everyone gets bored after a while. We gots to spice it up in Cal Plaza and see what happens.
I will say if you guys are continually vocal about it after we rotate dishes once or twice… it could come back faster than you think! (wink wink)
WHOA the press!
On a quicky note, SCHNIKES it’s pretty crazy that we’ve been open almost two weeks now, and we’ve had more write-ups (Eater LA, Grub Street LA, LA Times Daily Food Blog+Print) and foodie blog reviews (MidTownLunch, The Minty) than we thought we’d have, get or even see… but it’s pretty cool and we’ll take it! LOL
On that note, here’s a lil song I’d like to dedicate to… CRISPY TOFU BALLS by your and my friend… USHER w/ this USHER-riffic classic… oh YES! Just imagine singing this song to the tofu balls… and HEY, if someone were to organize doing like an a capella version of this for the tofu balls, how could we say “No” to bringing it back then!?!?! LOL
Come to SK Din Dins (Thurs+Fri/6-9p), and you can try some of these dishes!
And yeah, I know there’s a LAKERS game tonight, but you can always get the food to-go. I can put the game over the PA system too. ^_^
Btw, we’re bringing back the NEBRASKA ANGUS JAPANESE MEATBALL CURRY (I know, it’s a long name.. but it’s a fun one too) JUST for Din Dins this week. I’m very happy about it myself, I kinda miss it already! :)
If/when you do come, don’t forget PARKING:
Here are some PARKING tips:
we VALIDATE for our parking garage (both California Plaza garageson Olive between 2nd + 4th, 350 or 300) only if you get in before/by 7pm (EXACTLY). If you do, 2 hrs FREE!
street parking is free on Grand after 8pm-I think street parking is free on Olive after 6pm-don’t forget you can park in YELLOW loading zones after 6pm (FREE on Sundays!)
you can also park at 4th+Hill (or near) for decent prices ($5 I think), and take the Angel’s Flight ($.25 each way) up
or you can METRO to Pershing Square, and take the Angel’s Flight ($.25 each way) up
or just CALL us if you get lost 213.617.3474
Don’t forget that it’s a TRIPLE WHAMMY BYE-BYE week w/ CRISPY TOFU BALLS, PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE and the much beloved (well, by most anyway) KOREAN GLASS NOODLES/JAPCHAE.
And on that note, I invite you to watch this great FAST FOOD FOLK SONG. I literally just found it now looking for a video to end my post with… and ya know what’s even more awesome than this song… well watch, the guy on the other end get’s the ENTIRE order right… WHOOOOOA!
Hope we see ya tonight… or tomorrow… or sometime please??!?! ^_^
Okay, now that I got that outta my system… Did you have a nice weekend ya’ll? I can safely say we sure did. I’ll do a post on this (prolly) tomorrow, but we FINALLY got to pop our Ludobites (4.0) cherry. Oh man, so delicious, so stuffed (we got 1 of EVERYTHING) and if we’ve never told you- these guys are a HUGE inspiration to us as well. But again, enough of that stuff and on with the show:
THE BYE-BYE DISH HAS BEEN DECIDED:
Delicious, juicy and sometimes crunch-licious (if you get the Wrap or Banh Mi Sandwich version that is)
NOM NOM PORK (aka “Nem Nuong”)
(the crunchy surprise!)
SO WHAT’S NEW?:
Ever had… ummm.. Korean BBQ? Ever had… ummm.. Bulgogi? (and if you said no to any of those… DOH… just come on in for a sample, m’kay?) Then you MIGHT just appreciate this delicious and mouth-watering reinvention of Korean BBQ classic
BULGOGI BURGER (served w/ a slightly sweet+spicy Korean Chili/Gochujang Sauce)
And I quote myself:
(lip smacking)
“It’s TASTAAAAY”
ANYTHING ELSE WE SHOULD KNOW?:
Unicorns MIGHT be real
Trix are for kids… and adults like me that talk in kid-jibberish
PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE is back!
We love ERASURE ^_^ (and yes, Andy Bell is CRAAAZY!)
OMG, we’ve been around a month… a MONTH! We’re STILL in awe about all this, and it’s pretty cool anyway you look at it. I know I keep saying this, but think about it: we started in May outta the back of our apartment, at the time ONLY once a week and then we expanded to only twice a week… and then less than a year we have our own diggs in DTLA. Whatever happens, HOLY CRAP we accomplished a lot, right?
But since we’re still going, please continue to spread the word! We ain’t “THERE” yet, but we we’d like to be “THERE” or “ANYWHERE” that keeps us doing what we’re doing.. and allows us to come up/experiment with even more Pan-Asian comfort food too. ^_^
Otherwise, I hope everyone had a great and incredible weekend (for us it might have been the most relaxing weekend SINCE we’ve opened…NICE!)
SO the rotation continues! Two items coming back ESPECIALLY a very popular and highly requested KOREAN GLASS NOODLES. (see, we listen… sometimes ^_^)
LAST WEEK (*tear*) for:
NEBRASKA ANGUS JAPANESE MEATBALL CURRY
Newbie of the week:
LEMONGRASS TOFU
*nom nom nom*
Oldie (in the sense that we’ve only been open a month) but goodie SIDES:
KOREAN GLASS NOODLES (aka “japchae”)
You wanted it, and you got it ;)
PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE
And in honor of our rotation/substitution concept (i.e. I’ve come up with a lame reason to play a music vid from one of RADDEST groups around ^_^), I dedicate this video from the SILVERSUN PICKUPS entitled…umm.. SUBSTITUTION (;p)
Have a great week everyone, continue spreading the word and if you’ve read this far… keep on the lookout. We might have a special surprise for ya this week!
HAPPY MONDAY (barf!) Welcome back to the grind. For those of us that don’t have Facebook, twitter or the entire internet blocked, here’s a little tidbit from yesterday. If you can’t read the previous blog posts because your internet impaired, yesterday we went ALL NEW which we haven’t done in a L-O-N-G time. We served:
VIETNAMESE BRAISED STAR ANISE PORK (‘da meat)
HONEY PANKO CRUSTED CRISPY TOFU BALLS (‘da m’fing good veggie)
PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE (side)
Pics are above for those that didn’t make it, and for those that want to cause further frustration to themselves because they can’t have it because:
We rotate our menu and who knows when we’ll bring any of these 3 items back
You work in an area where Gruel is the special of the day and only option (sorry suckas)
You’re a lurker and STILL haven’t stopped by (s’alright, more for us until you show up ^_^)
Btw, did anyone notice that we have 15 Five-star reviews on Yelp now!!! How friggin’ sweet is that. Damnit we’re spoiled now. The minute we drop from anything but a Five-star rating, we’ll be bummed but that’s life I guess!
Alrighty, enough of those shenanigans (which my spell checker ACTUALLY knows how to spell correctly… genius!) We have to think about what we’re going to serve Wednesday. The KITCHEN NINJA feels like trying some more new stuff, so more than likely Weds will be all new again. HOORAY!
And on the topic of new and a rotating menu, after much thought and deliberation with in the inner circle of SK (me and my wife that is), we’re going to stick with this as we grow. I bring this up because we ARE considering growth already. Don’t want to go “on the record” yet, but we’re vetting out an opportunity as we speak and one of the main questions have been “do we keep surprising people” or “do we sell out and be like everyone else?” I say F’ that, we’re sticking to our guns and surprising people. I’m thinking the routine will change from what dish is your fave to these people will just trust us and take what we dish out. Or as one of my New Yorker friends put it, the Soup Nazi did just fine not telling anyone what he was serving… why can’t we?
But anyway, gotta go… and I can’t seem to keep up these blog posts and one of my favorite things to do with them too: embed funny unrelated videos. With that said, please allow me to present to you something I JUST found now: Christopher Walken reciting Lady Gaga’s POKER FACE… an instant classic:
